It's been a few months since the paper was published, but hopefully it's still fresh enough to mention. A collaborative study with a number of colleagues, including my former student Karolina Bryłka (presently a PhD student at Lund University), Elżbieta Mydłowska (University of Szczecin), Bridget Wade (University College London), Steven Bohaty (University of Southampton), and …
Pseudoloculate valve structure
There are several types of valve structure in diatoms, and one of them is termed pseudoloculate. The pseudoloculate valve structure is an ancient evolutionary feature, found in numerous early diatom groups, including such bizarre genera as Gladius or Gladiopsis. In more recent lineages, Stephanopyxis and Triceratium (but only in the strict sense!) are good examples of pseudoloculate valve …
Liostephania!
Looking at siliceous microfossil slides made of Eocene deep-sea core materials, you may find a curious circular or polygonal object. It resembles a coin, but usually has some radial features on the circular surface, or surfaces. It lacks the innumerable perforations that you usually see on a diatom valve, and is composed of solid silica. …
Rutilaria!
Some diatom genera are tricky and easily confused with other taxa, especially when examined in light microscope only. But Rutilaria is different: you cannot possibly mistake it for any other diatom. It may look insignificant at first, just another elongate shape among all diatoms. But when you take a closer look at the way the …
Entogoniopsis!
Almost exactly ten years ago, in March 2011, I had a remarkable experience. The Central European Diatom Meeting was held at University of Szczecin, with lots of colleagues attending, including Nina Strelnikova. It was the third time I met her. During the coffee breaks, Nina was keen to show me some scanning electron micrographs that …
Grove & Sturt’s Oamaru diatoms
In 1886, an unremarkable rock specimen labelled „Kaolinite” was displayed in London as part of the Indian and Colonial Exhibition. This whitish or cream-colored rock came from the outcrops close to the town of Oamaru, on the South Island of New Zealand, and was only discovered a few years earlier, most likely in 1882, by …
The Micropalaeontological Society 50th Anniversary Conference 2020 keynote talk video
Earlier this year, I had the pleasure to give a keynote talk as part of TMS 50th Anniversary Conference 2020. The talk title was "What next for Palaeogene marine diatoms? Lessons from the western North Atlantic". TMS has just made the recordings available online. If you're interested to watch and listen, please follow the link …
Czytaj dalej The Micropalaeontological Society 50th Anniversary Conference 2020 keynote talk video
Robert Kaye Greville
13 December is Robert Kaye Greville’s birthday anniversary. He was born in 1794 in Australia. This post is not intended as his biography, as you can easily look up the basic facts from Greville's life on the web, but rather as a way of remembering a remarkable person on the diatom scene. Greville was one …
What can you actually see on a diatom slide?
Know them all? All identities revealed at the bottom of the page! The fun thing about diatom slides is that you usually get to see more than just one group of microfossils. That is, there is more to a diatom slide than only diatoms! In fact, it would be more appropriate to call these siliceous …
Keratophora nitida
Rumor has it that Eocene diatoms are stunning. Let me convince you this is by no means an exaggeration by sharing the story of an unusual diatom, Keratophora nitida, first described by Josef Pantocsek in 1889. Keratophora nitida Pantocsek as seen in Scanning Electron Microscope Josef Pantocsek was a distinguished Hungarian diatomist. If you start …